Former UFC lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez revealed that Nate Diaz turned down an offer to fight him. To strengthen his chance to get a title shot, Alvarez called out lightweight contender Tony Ferguson.

“I really thought Nate Diaz would’ve fought me. He said a lot of stuff in Mexico, looks at me funny in the lobby and shit like that, so I thought if worse comes to worse, Nate will definitely fight me. So I was shocked when they gave him a bout agreement and he said no to that. I thought he would fight me for sure, so, I don’t know what’s up with him. We’re just trying to get somebody I can get excited about. We should know in a couple of days or so. If Khabib isn’t fighting Tony, I’d like to fight Tony,” Alvarez said.

At UFC Fight Night 90, Eddie Alvarez grabbed the UFC lightweight belt after defeating Rafael dos Anjos via TKO. Instead of making his first title defense against No.1 contender Khabib Nurmagomedov, Alvarez chose to fight then-UFC featherweight champion Conor McGregor. His reign was cut short after losing via TKO in the second round.

Since then, Alvarez has been eyeing to bounce back. The UFC offered him to fight Dustin Poirier and Michael Chiesa, which he turned down. Alvarez claimed that he doesn’t want to “go far back” and fight a “big name” instead. Eddie Alvarez and Nate Diaz already had a brewing rivalry since UFC 188.

The former UFC lightweight champion seemed confident that Diaz would accept the fight offer. Unfortunately, the UFC informed them that Diaz turned down the bout which left Alvarez in a state of shock. Challenging Tony Ferguson would be a good idea but it remains questionable if “El Cucuy” will be interested.

Tony Ferguson calls out Conor McGregor after canceled UFC 209

After UFC 205, lightweight contenders Khabib Nurmagomedov and Tony Ferguson expressed their desire to fight The Notorious. Unfortunately, McGregor decided to take a “10-month off” to spend more time with his family. This made the UFC decide to create an interim light title.

Nurmagomedov emerged as the top favorite to win the UFC 209 co-main event but an unfortunate incident prevented him from facing Ferguson. The undefeated Russian mixed martial artist felt ill during his weight cut and was hospitalized, leading to the cancellation of his fight against Ferguson. “El Cucuy” understood Nurmagomedov’s situation but isn’t interested in fighting him for the fourth time.

In an Instagram post, Ferguson called out Conor McGregor, who was expected to face the winner of Ferguson-Nurmagomedov UFC 209 bout. However, with McGregor’s UFC return still unknown and potential bout against Floyd Mayweather Jr. in the mix, there is a possibility that Ferguson will accept the fight offered by Eddie Alvarez.